


Rituals

by purplesocrates



Series: Recovery [2]
Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-05
Updated: 2017-01-05
Packaged: 2018-09-15 01:34:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9213437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purplesocrates/pseuds/purplesocrates
Summary: Will asks Hannibal to cut his hair and also if he is in love with Will. Slow burner but we are getting closer to the porny bits promise.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Any feedback always appreciated xxx

Will still slept fitfully, his mind always trying to drown him, pull him further down than he wanted to go. Hannibal would watch this nightly push and pull wondering at its resolution whether it had one. He would watch Will's eyes violently observe whatever horrors his mind had conjured for him, the pictures moving too fast for Hannibal to catch. They could usually move into each other's minds easily but when Will dreamt the current was too strong, the emotions and violence were constantly blurred with movement, frenetic and disorderly. There would, however, always become a point where Will would become still, his body exhausted it would suddenly stop. Hannibal would check Will's breathing and he looked forward to that moment every night. 

They were sharing the bed now. There would be a few hours in the early morning when they both slept. Will would usually wake first and watch Hannibal sleep. He would sleep so soundly it made Will's heart ache with confusion as to how this was even possible, his own nights being as plagued as they were. If Hannibal were his nightmare, Will thought, he was a very serene incarnation. Then Will would get that flash of Hannibal ripping the dragons throat out with his bared teeth and would oddly smile at the incongruity of it.

When Hannibal woke and found Will watching him he would serenely watch back and they would often stay like that, moments stretching between them, Hannibal imagined tendrils of energy leaving him and making their way to Will prodding and nudging him slowly and insistently moving the immovable object closer. Will would just watch as Hannibal's eyes fluttered imagining something just beyond Will's grasp. In these moments he would feel as if Hannibal was touching him lightly all over his body and it was calming like a constant, gentle hum. 

Hannibal would rise first he would shower with the door to the bathroom open as if he did not want them to lose sight of each other. Will would watch the water as it travelled down Hannibal's body, tan lines on his lower back and upper thighs always drawing his eye with their almost comical whiteness. He would notice the scars on his legs and on his chest fading with the sun tan. He would watch all of this as objectively as possible and wonder at Hannibal's comfort in his own body. Will had never felt that way, he constantly felt like a traveller in a borrowed body, a second hand well used vehicle that might just stop at any moment and reject him. Hannibal moved with a sureness of something completely self possessed, he was in tune with himself. 

Will would watch Hannibal get dressed after he showered, those sure movements. He dressed like it was a ritual like it was a prayer. Will dressed haphazardly, no decisions just chance. Hannibal's clothes always so exact and purposeful even in just a shirt and trousers, they matched perfectly they looked immaculate. He was always immaculate even in the darkness with the black dragon blood dripping out of his mouth down his chin, his clothes stained with his own, the dragons and Will's blood all mingled together in sacrifice. Perhaps, Will thought, this was when he was at his most immaculate.

"Coffee?" Hannibal said and broke Will from his revelry and suddenly Will felt every ache in his body again, he yawned and stretched slowly, the scar Hannibal had given him on his lower stomach could be seen like a burn mark. Hannibal watched this with something akin to adoration and arousal on his face, he loved to see Will uncoil. 

"Yes thank you." Will said noticing Hannibal's strange expression and smiling. "See something you like?" Will said unlike him.

Hannibal arched an eyebrow and smiled. "You are the one who watches me shower every morning."

"You leave the door open." Will said.

Hannibal smiled and left the bedroom to make coffee, Will watched him leave.

* * * *

Their routine was simple, a light breakfast and a short walk on the beach, each day a little longer as Will's strength grew. They would eat lunch together on the porch and then dinner in the kitchen. Hannibal liked his routine of meals and enjoyed watching Will become more nourished with every bite of his food. Will's skin was getting darker and his scars fading. At first Will would often doze in the mornings after his walk but as his strength returned he became more awake. However with this wakefulness came more restlessness. He was twitchy and could not sit still. He would go for a second walk in the afternoon and then for a third in evening. Hannibal would watch his progress down the beach until he lost sight of him. Hannibal would wait on the porch until he could see Will returning. 

Some evenings Hannibal would wake to find Will gone from the bed they now shared. The empty side cold and still, Hannibal would put his hand on the sheets where Will had been and sigh. He would get up and walk to the porch and look for Will's figure sat on the sand watching the waves. He would usually just have his pyjama trousers on, his bare back translucent in the moonlight. Hannibal could usually tell by the shape of his shoulders whether he wanted company. Some nights he would go and sit with Will in silence and then leave him when Hannibal felt the pull of sleep, other nights he would sit with him until the sun came up. Some nights Will would leave Hannibal there alone and go back and sleep on the sofa leaving the bed free for Hannibal to reclaim. Some nights they would speak, small quiet words between them other nights it was just silence.

Hannibal preferred the nights Will would talk to him, his voice was slowly returning to normal and Hannibal liked the sound of it merging with the waves. They would talk of everything and nothing, the unspoken words between them lay heavy and broken. Hannibal longed to talk more about the dragon and the moment they had shared together. He longed to talk to Will about the times he was sewing up Will's wounds while he lay unconscious and moaning. How he had to stitch his own wounds while he waited for a Will to come round. How Will, when he had regained consciousness, had insisted upon taking up the task of sewing Hannibal together with great dexterity. Hannibal had thought about the lures Will made for fishing, he had felt like one under his soft but confident touch. How he watched Will in those moments eyes intent in concentration and felt a longing he never knew he had.

Will just spoke of dreams, nightmares in abstract forms. The images he could see, he told Hannibal one night he had seen the dragons wings unfold before they slew him. Will described it so eloquently that Hannibal had seen them rise out of the ocean in front of him and it took his breath away. These moments they shared in the dark on the beach were in a bubble, suspended in time above them as come the day they would manoeuvre around each other stepping over conversations not being had. Will felt safer more brave in the dark. His voice was stronger wrapped in the moonlight. Hannibal longed to reach out and touch Will but the darkness created a barrier to Hannibal. In the light he could get away with more, occasional gentle brushes against him sometimes accidental, sometimes not. 

Will was always just as aware of Hannibal as Hannibal was of him, they were constantly connected, Will felt it like a physical bond tugging at him when he got too far away from Hannibal, it was like elastic stretching never breaking. 

"Are you in love with me?" Will asked one morning as they sat and ate breakfast together. It was very unusual for Will to talk like this in the morning, Hannibal thought this was a question night Will would ask not day Will. His tone was conversational as if this thought had just occurred to him, and had not been bubbling away under his skin burning his veins.

Hannibal paused put his fork of eggs down and looked at Will who was looking at him with a strange far away expression on his face.

"Why would you ask that?" Hannibal said, keeping his tone soft.

"Bedelia implied you were once." Will said matter of factly. "After Florence."

Hannibal took a sip of orange juice and then said, "are you in love with me Will? Is that why you are asking?" Hannibal said.

"You didn't answer the question." Will said. "Are you?"

Hannibal was silent for a moment while he asked himself this questions. He had asked himself it many times before intrigued by its answer. He never thought Will would ask him this and was taken aback by how the first answer that had popped into his head was 'yes'. 

"I suppose in a way yes." Hannibal said, looking directly at Will.

"In what way?" Will asked holding Hannibal's gaze.

"We are connected, we always have been you and I. Since we killed together that bond has only strengthened. You are the only person who knows me, truly knows me and sees me. I think I am that for you also. So if that is love then yes." Hannibal said. 

Will paused then said "that just means you love me, that you care about me. Are you in love with me?"

"You see a distinction?" Hannibal asked.

"Well yes. You can love someone as a friend, as family but to be in love with someone means something different doesn't it?" Will said, like the way you looked at me this morning, Will thought.

"You mean am I attracted to you?" Hannibal asked and wondered why Will was bringing this up now. Perhaps it was because of this morning. 

"I suppose that's part of love isn't it, lust." Will said he still had not broken Hannibal's gaze.

"I am not sure what you want me to say." Hannibal said, where was he going with this? 

"I want you to say whatever you want to say." Will said.

"Is this because I flirt with you? I would like to point out you have always flirted back." Hannibal said matter of factly. Will continued to look at Hannibal for a moment and then broke the connection.

"Can you cut my hair today?" Will said and Hannibal figured the subject was dropped for now.

"It's easier when it's wet and cleaned." Hannibal said and got back to eating his breakfast.

"I'll shower after breakfast and you can do it then." Will said and continued eating, Hannibal noticed how slowly Will ate these days still getting used to that scar and the new shape of his mouth, nervous to re-open old wounds.

'Are you in love with me?' Those words echoed in Hannibal's head as they sat in amiable silence. 'Yes Will, yes I am in love with you. Are you in love with me? Do you know you share my insides now that we share organs, blood and bones? How can you not feel that our hearts are pumping the same blood through the same veins. How can you not feel my heartbeat under your chest as I feel yours?' These thoughts lay in front of both of them ignored but not discarded. If only Hannibal could enter Will's dreams he would have seen the violence and the passion that he made him feel deep in the marrow of his bones. 

Hannibal sighed and Will looked up at him imagining tracing the shape of Hannibal's lips with his fingers over and over again until he could feel and know them in the dark.

* * * *

Will undressed quickly and went to the shower, he left the door open. He didn't usually, he usually showered after Hannibal when he was cooking breakfast but he usually closed it anyway. He left it open today and he knew Hannibal could hear the difference and would know. The shower was cold and Will could see the steam coming off him in tendrils. 

Hannibal was waiting outside on the porch, he was drinking coffee, standing looking towards the house he watched Will as he walked outside. Will was holding a towel, a brush and some scissors looking slightly hesitant. His hair was damp as requested and droplets of water still ran down his face. His clothes were slightly damp from his haste to dress. 

"Where do you want me?" Will said.

"Sit on the chair put the towel around your shoulders." Hannibal gestured to the kitchen chair he had moved out on the porch for this purpose, Hannibal had also brought a dustpan and brush for clearing up the hair afterwards which was leant up against the chair. 

Will sat down and put the towel around his shoulders, he gave Hannibal the scissors and the brush. Hannibal set the scissors down on the bench they had on the porch and started to brush Will's hair. It had gotten long it was past his shoulders when it was wet. It was thick too and the curls were still there at the ends even with the water weighing it down. Hannibal moved his fingers through it as he brushed it. Once he was satisfied he put the brush down and picked up the scissors. Will watched the waves and the sunlight as Hannibal moved around him. Hannibal took his time just taking a little off the ends at a time he didn't want to rush. Will closed his eyes and just concentrated on Hannibal's slow but deliberate movements, occasionally Hannibal would bend down close to Will's face and compare the length of each side. Will would feel Hannibal's breath on him, the heat of his skin, the sound of his breathing steady and slow. Will would imagine Hannibal's face in these moments, the concentration in his eyes, the shape of his lips, his hands brushing up against Will's face.

Hannibal then cut the back of Will's hair his fingers brushing through the nape of his hair line. Picking up lines of hair between his fingers and cutting them expertly. Hannibal could smell Will so close to him, the shampoo he had used and the soap, he breathed him in deeply. 

"How short do you want it?" Hannibal asked.

It took Will a moment to realise Hannibal had spoken, his accent such a lulling sound. "Whatever you think. I trust you." Will said and he didn't even open his eyes. Will could feel Hannibal's smile though and tried to picture it in his head, the shape of it.

Hannibal removed the towel from Will's shoulders giving his hair one last tussle through. "There." He said triumphantly. "Much better." 

Will put his hands through his hair and could feel its shorter length he smiled. He stood up and looked at his reflection in the window. "Looks great. Thank you." Will said, Hannibal was sweeping up the hair into the dustpan. "That's a lot of hair." Will said.

"It had gotten long. You will be cooler now." Hannibal said and stood up taking the hair to throw in the bin in the kitchen. He returned to find will still looking at his reflection. 

"It feels better, thank you." Will said again.

Hannibal looked at him, his hair was drying now in the heat, the shorter length suited him he looked more like himself it was a sight Hannibal had missed. Hannibal moved closer to Will invading his personal space but Will did not back away. Hannibal put his hands through Will's hair and Will closed his eyes before he realised what he was doing. Hannibal seemed to have this effect on his now, the closer they became the more of a connection he felt it burned through him and took all his breath away. A small moan escaped Will's lips and Hannibal smiled. Will opened his eyes and looked at Hannibal, up close he could see all the lines and scars of his face, his eyes were dark pools looking though him. Will thought about the shape of Hannibal's lips again and how he wanted to trace them with his fingers in the dark. They stayed there taking each other in. Hannibal moved his hand down through Will's hair and onto his cheek brushing the scar there which was still sensitive. Hannibal leaned in and kissed it gently, Will did not flinch as he did this which surprised and encouraged Hannibal. He let his lips linger on the scar he wanted to lick it slightly feel it against his tongue but he didn't. Hannibal reached into his pocket and removed the pot of salve he had given Will before. He stepped back a little removing his lips from the scar and opened the pot. He put his finger in the salve and gently brushed some on the scar. Will could feel his entire body humming as Hannibal did this. Watching Hannibal as he looked at Will this way was strange. The gentle touch and soft kiss was all enveloping and Will found he was holding his breath.

"Breathe Will." Hannibal whispered into his ear.

Will let out a long held breath and his head fell to Hannibal's shoulder, Hannibal put his hand on the back of Will's head and pulled him closer, Will arms encircled Hannibal into an embrace. They stayed there in each other's arms just breathing until Hannibal gently pushed Will back kissed the top of his head and then stepped away. Hannibal picked up the scissors, brush and towel and took the chair back into the kitchen.

Will followed him and stood in the doorway of the kitchen, he watched Hannibal.

"I think you are." Will said.

Hannibal stopped, his back was to Will and he didn't turn around. "I am what?" Hannibal attempting to keep his voice steady.

"In love with me." Will said.

Hannibal sighed and turned around but Will had left and was walking out along the beach again.


End file.
